


Dragon's Treasure

by CastleSL



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Dragon!Lance, Fantasy AU, Hurt/Comfort, Knight!Shiro, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-18
Updated: 2019-12-18
Packaged: 2021-02-26 03:21:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,965
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21842848
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CastleSL/pseuds/CastleSL
Summary: The stories that Shiro grew up with as a child were filled to the brim with fantastical creatures. Griffins and mermaids danced in his imagination and magical relics were used to defeat great beasts. Shiro’s favorite had always been dragons, great winged creatures who cut through the skies with their power and grace. For every wish that Shiro had to see any mythical creature, he had twenty more to see a dragon.
Relationships: Lance/Shiro (Voltron)
Comments: 6
Kudos: 114





	Dragon's Treasure

**Author's Note:**

> This was written for the Arms of the Oceans Shance Zine! I'm so glad I finally get to post it! Please enjoy <3

The stories that Shiro grew up with as a child were filled to the brim with fantastical creatures. Griffins and mermaids danced in his imagination and magical relics were used to defeat great beasts. Shiro’s favorite had always been dragons, great winged creatures who cut through the skies with their power and grace. For every wish that Shiro had to see any mythical creature, he had twenty more to see a dragon. 

If only his dreams had told him where he could find the dragons. In all the books he read while growing up, the stories and testimonies said the same thing. Either dragons weren’t real, or they had all been killed off a long time ago during the murderous crusades of Daibazaal. But that didn’t make Shiro’s hope flicker, especially not with the railing stories his grandfather used to tell him. According to the waning old man, he had ridden on the back of a giant soribel dragon. Bright green and feisty, it’s long sweeping neck had thrashed around proudly in the sunlight. It’s scales had been glittering, warm with life. So many details had whizzed around Shiro’s young mind and he clung to every word. 

Then Shiro became a soldier. He commanded hundreds in battle and was always on the front lines with his men. He fought for peace, honor, and the sense of purpose that the fight gave him. He aged exponentially, as was common, and with enough time spent on the battlefield where men were the monsters, soon the creatures of mysticality faded into myth. Out of sight, out of mind, after all, and despite Shiro’s childhood love for them, dragons fell to the back of his mind.

Of course, the years passed by and the Galra invaded. Shiro was captured and tortured, ripped away from his homeland and dragged into the enemy territory to be used as entertainment. He lost his arm somewhere along the way. He lost his dignity shortly after. After a year, he escaped, by some miracle, with some hastily stolen supplies. That didn’t give him back his arm, though, or any hope that he could go back to the life he had. No, even if he gave every earthly possession he had to get back home, there was no need for a knight with no arm, no way of defending himself or his fellow countrymen. 

Shiro found himself wandering aimlessly through the woods because there were no villages or towns he could stumble into. No one in their right mind would think to establish a township anywhere near Galra territory, so Shiro was out of luck for the time being. 

But he did have a destination in mind. 

Altea was the only kingdom that was strong enough to remain on the border of the Galra’s land and keep them at bay. Shiro had heard some Galra soldiers complaining about the ‘filthy Alteans’ who lived in the north. So that was where Shiro intended to go. 

_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_

At least that was his plan, until he was spotted by Galra scouts and he was forced to run in any random direction that would help him in losing them. Needless to say, after not eating for God only knew how long and not sleeping in days, Shiro was in no condition for a chase. 

He lost consciousness on the bank of a wide, slow-moving river. The last thing he heard were the cries of Galra soldiers and he resigned himself to whatever would happen next. 

_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_

Shiro expected darkness when he opened his eyes again. He expected pain and the uncomfortable tug of his limbs being chained together. He expected to be dead, but that was apparently not the case. At least he didn’t think it was. Shiro had at least hoped that in heaven he would wake to feel his own two arms again. No such luck. Shiro’s right arm was still missing. But he was alive and unharmed. After taking those facts into consideration, Shiro finally looked around to see just where he actually was. 

It was a cave. A tall cavern that seemed to be naturally carved into the face of rocks. As Shiro looked for the source of light, he was quite surprised to see a wide, open exit of the cave behind him, unguarded and free to use. As he looked closer, he noticed that half of the cave’s opening was letting in fresh spring water that pooled inside like a personal oasis. Just looking at it suddenly made Shiro realize how thirsty he was. All he could think about was tasting the cold, clean water on his tongue after a very long journey with seemingly no end. 

After Shiro had drank his fill, he gathered what few supplies he’d been brought in with and stood. He couldn’t stay there. He was grateful to the good samaritan who saved him from recapture, but he had to get to Altea. The sooner he made it within the city walls, the better. So, after filling up his waterskin, Shiro made his way out of the cave. 

_-_-_-_-_-_-_

Let it be known that Takashi Shirogane was no master wayfinder. He was given basic training in how to read the stars and a knowledge of what plants were safe and which were poisonous. That had been about it. He also remembered that it was typically best to stay close to water. Which was why he kept traveling along the same river that he had originally run towards. Thankfully the stream from the cave fed back into the main river, so Shiro used that as a guide. As long as he didn’t go back to the Galra, he would be okay.   
After a while, Shiro couldn’t shake the feeling that he was being watched. Though every time Shiro stopped to peer into the woods that surrounded him on either side of the river, he saw nothing. 

“Come on, Shiro. There’s no one there. Pull it together.” He chalked it up to his paranoia playing tricks on him and kept going. 

Now, imagine Shiro’s shock when he knelt by the river to get a drink of water and lifted his head to see a set of blue eyes staring at him. 

The knight blinked once, then twice more before falling back on his ass with a shriek. At the same time, whatever had decided to spy on him dove back into the river. Shiro only got a brief glimpse of it above water, but the flash of glittering bright blue scales told him everything he needed to know.

A dragon. A living, breathing dragon. At least Shiro assumed it to be one. It couldn’t have been a mermaid, they were limited to salt water only. Still, it looked nothing like the story books said-which was seriously throwing Shiro for a loop. Instead of powerful wings that could lift the creature into the sky, this dragon looked more aquatic. The bottom half of the creature held a striking resemblance to that of an alligator, with a large tale that was covered in menacing spikes and ended in razor sharp fins. Short legs with claws allowed the creature to crawl on land and dredge through the sediment of the river banks. The top half, however, well… It looked more human. A slender torso and lithe arms that were gradually covered with scales as they went down. Clawed fingers and sharp, unnaturally blue eyes. The face was actually quite handsome, considering the bright scales highlighting the cheekbones and tip of the nose. Claws aside, the size of the beast was intimidating enough. It had to be at least twenty feet long, yet still slim enough to maneuver easily through the water. It was… incredible. 

“Are you okay?” Shiro almost missed the question, he was too busy staring at the magnificent creature. After the question was repeated, Shiro realized that the creature was actually speaking to him. And it sounded human. 

“I… What?”

“Are you okay? You’ve been traveling a lot after just collapsing. You should be resting.” The creature pointed out and Shiro felt like his world was being flipped on its axis. 

“How do you know that?” He asked cautiously and watched as the creature smiled, revealing a set of perfectly white, pointed teeth. 

“These are my waters. This river and the connecting northern bay. You collapsed nearby and I took you to the cove to rest- which you should still be doing, by the way.” 

“So. It was you that brought me there… and you are?”

“Oh! Right! Sorry! I’m Lance, water dragon extraordinaire.” The dragon- Lance, apparently- boasted and lifted himself out of the water a little more. “And you’re Shiro, I’m guessing?” 

“What about the Galra?” Shiro asked after nodding his head to answer Lance’s question.

“I snapped at them a little to scare them off. I don’t really care for them, they drop so much trash in my river. It’s annoying.” Lance huffed and if it wasn’t for the scales, tail, and the claws, Shiro would have thought he was talking to an average person. But no, he was speaking to a dragon, who apparently had a soft spot for fallen knights and a grudge against polluters. 

“Well… Thank you, for all you’ve done. I appreciate it, but I’m alright. I just need to get to the nearest kingdom.” Shiro slowly straightened up into a standing position, meanwhile Lance visibly perked up.

“You’re trying to go to Altea?”

“Yes- how do you know about Altea?” It seemed unlikely that a creature who lived in the water would have access to maps of the region. Lance shrugged his shoulders innocently and his tail swished in the water, back and forth. 

“I listen to merchants as they ride along the river in their ships. They talk about Altea a lot. It’s a good place for trade, I think. The stuff they drop in the water from time to time is really pretty.” Lance has quite the extensive collection of shiny treasures from overthrown cargo. The shiny jewelry was always his personal favorite, they sparkled so nicely in water. 

“Oh, then… yes. I need to go to Altea.”

“Why?”

“Because I have nowhere else to go.”

“Oh…” 

“Oh?” 

“Well, now, I’m just a simple little water dragon, but… Altea is down river. You’re heading up river.” Lance dragged the tip of his clawed finger through the damp sand, drawing random little designs. Shiro blinked again before his shoulders slumped.

“...Oh.”

_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_

For the next week, Shiro turned around his course and set off for Altea, this time with a companion that he was actually aware of. Lance was… interesting, to say that least. When he wasn’t under the surface of the water, he was casually drifting along the current, chatting amiably while Shiro mostly listened. He did get on land to walk every now and then, but Lance made it very clear that he liked to be in the water most of all. Shiro could understand that, Lance was a water dragon after all. That being said, it still took Shiro a while to process the fact that he had not only been saved by a dragon, but the dragon was ridiculously friendly. 

Lance talked extensively about his collection of wonders. Trinkets lost to the waters of the ocean and rivers, sparkling shells and even some more magical relics that Lance thought were nice to look at. They all decorated his little underwater cove, which was apparently too far down in the depth of the northern sea for a human to swim to. Though Shiro had a sneaking suspicion that if he asked, Lance would find a way to take Shiro there, if only to show off his collection.

Despite his love of the grandiose, Lance was not selfish by any means. While he may have had a love for things that were shiny, he was more than willing to share with others. Shiro did not need to hunt or scavenge for food anymore. Lance would go hunting once or twice a day and bring back enough fish to feed Shiro plenty. The human felt bad that he couldn’t offer something in return for the constant service, but Lance would just flash his sharp teeth in a smile and say that Shiro’s company was enough. After having little interaction with anyone since his escape, Shiro appreciated the company just as much. Shiro was lonely, he could admit that. There wasn’t much socializing within a prison cell after all. He hadn’t had anyone to talk to in over a year. Something told Shiro that Lance, for all his friendly nature, didn’t have many people to be around either.

On top of the food and company, Lance apparently thought Shiro needed his own collection of treasures. 

Every morning, without fail, Shiro would wake up to something by his head, tucked on a nice bed of grass. Sometimes it was a shell, or a flower, or even a shiny rock that could be mistaken for a crystal. All harmless little gifts, but Lance seemed so proud of himself when Shiro would take his present and tuck it away in his bag. One day Shiro made the mistake of leaving a small flower behind- under the assumption that the flower would be crushed if he kept it. Lance had pouted and swam under the water for the whole day until Shiro rolled up his pant legs and got in the water himself to apologize. Lance stopped giving flowers, but Shiro made sure to keep every present after that, no matter what it was. Seeing them every morning always made him smile, either in amusement or endearment, and it had been so long since he’d woken up with a smile on his face. 

_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_

“You shouldn’t keep hurting yourself like this.” Lance pointed out one day while he pulled himself up out of the water and onto the bank of the river. He’d been watching Shiro try to practice one-handed combat again, like he tended to do most mornings. Even if Shiro had no arm and had accepted that he could no longer be a knight, he still pushed himself. He still felt like he needed to prove himself for the sake of it. Like usual, things did not work out for the best. Shiro overexerted himself and instead of growing stronger and more coordinated, he ended up straining the only arm he had left. 

Lance sighed in exasperation and he expected when Shiro growled in frustration. Not all their days traveling were good ones, especially not for Shiro. Still, Lance remained patient. “You can be whatever you want. But only if you’re not in a full body cast.”

“Then I want to be a soldier and be left alone.” Shiro snapped while he tried to roll his shoulder in circles to relieve some of the pain. It only worked for a few seconds before a wrong move sent a vicious sting down his spine. 

“Why do you have to be a soldier?” It was a question that Lance kept asking over and over again, no matter how many times Shiro gave him the same rehearsed answer. He needed to be a soldier to bring peace, to have a purpose. Lance couldn’t part with his own ideas that just being could also be a purpose. 

“Why do you care? You’re a dragon, all you care about are treasures.” It was an unfair statement, Shiro knew that. Not only had Lance never taken any of his possessions, he’d given Shiro enough gifts and trinkets to fill an entire shelf. The human turned his back on the dragon and ran his fingers through his hair to relieve some of the frustration. It didn’t help much. 

Lance was silent for a very long time. Shiro thought he might have actually struck the creature speechless, then Lance said, “I care about you.” There was no wavering in his voice. He believed what he said. For some reason, that only made Shiro even more irritated. 

“Well, stop! Stop caring! Stop following me and asking me all these questions I don’t know. I don’t know, alright? I have no idea why, I just do.” Sometime during his outburst, Shiro had whipped around to face Lance, who was now more on land than in the water. He seemed to be waiting- maybe to dodge something being tossed at his head. “It’s all I’ve known. I was a soldier to protect my home country. Then I was a prisoner. Then I was entertainment until I broke, then I was left in a cell to rot. And now I’m- I’m just-...” Shiro started to run out of steam, the anger flooding out of him and leaving him trembling in the aftermath. With no more angry adrenalin to keep him standing, Shiro’s legs gave out from under him and he crumbled. 

It synchronized perfectly with the way Lance dove at him from his perch on the damp earth. Before Shiro could even fully sink to the ground, the dragon coiled around him so that Lance’s arms hugged him from behind. His strong tail coiled around Shiro like a second set of limbs, keeping him pressed against the dragon’s warm body. It was like being hugged by a person and snuggled with a blanket all at once. Despite Shiro’s earlier agitation, he melted into the embrace. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d ever been held so tenderly- so affectionately. Probably not since his childhood. The thought made his lip quiver and he curled up against Lance like a child seeking protection from a menacing thunderstorm.

“What am I, Lance?” There was no hesitation this time as Shiro felt Lance nuzzle his cheek with the tip of his pointed nose. The answer was soft and sure. 

“Treasure.”


End file.
